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A Delhi Court on Tuesday dismissed the bail plea of Aam Aadmi Party MLA Amanatullah Khan, arrested for allegedly threatening a woman after she visited his residence to raise the issue of power cuts, and sent him to judicial custody.
Metropolitan Magistrate Manisha Tripathi, who sent the Okhla MLA to judicial custody till August 9, rejected his bail plea on the ground that he may influence witnesses and hamper investigation.
"The inconsistencies pointed out by the counsel of the complainant are a matter of evidence and trial. The co-accused in the case are yet to be identified and apprehended.
"Considering the facts and circumstances of the case, the nature of allegations and material on record, I am of the opinion that the accused might influence witnesses and hamper investigation if released on bail at this stage. Accordingly the application for bail is dismissed," the magistrate said.
Special Public Prosecutor Rajiv Mohan said that the probe into the case was still under progress and the complainant was constantly being threatened and harassed at the behest of the accused and he may influence witnesses and hamper the investigation.
Khan was produced before the court after the expiry of his police custody and the police requested the magistrate to send him to judicial custody.
Advocate Madan Lal, who appeared for Khan, sought bail for his client, contending that the accused is also the chairman of Delhi Waqf Board which earned him wrath of various political opponents.
"The present case is an attempt to falsely implicate him," the counsel said, alleging that the complainant had leveled false allegations against Khan at the behest of Station House Officer.
Khan was first detained for questioning and then arrested, a day after he alleged in a press conference that the woman was "pressurised" by the police into giving a false statement against him.
According to the police, on July 22, the woman had recorded her statement before a magistrate under Section 164 of CrPC.
She had alleged while she was returning from the legislator's residence, a vehicle tried mowing her down and Khan was sitting in it.
Prior to that, she had on July 19 filed a complaint with police alleging that at the AAP MLA's residence in Jamia Nagar, a youth had on July 10 abused her and threatened that she would be killed if she did not stop politicising the matter.
An FIR was subsequently registered in this regard under section 506 (criminal intidation) and 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of IPC.
After her statement to the magistrate, Section 308 was added to the FIR, a police officer said.
The woman, a resident of Jasola, had last week in a police complaint said she had telephoned Khan on July 10 and later went to his Batla House residence to raise the issue of power cuts with him.
Khan had, however, said he did not even know if the woman came to his residence.
Meanwhile, the Delhi police have registered a fresh case under non-cognisable offences against Khan on a complaint by some protesters in his constituency.
The case has been registered against Khan under Section 506 (punishment for intimidation) of IPC which is a non-cognisable offence, on the complaint of a group of protesters, a senior police officer said.
The complainant Syed Tanveer Ahmad, a resident of Shaheen Bagh in Okhla, said he, along with others, was protesting against civic woes and alleged underdevelopment of the constituency under the AAP government on July 16.
He alleged Khan reached the venue on the night of July 16 "with his men and threatened" them to call off the protest.
Tanveer alleged the MLA intimidated him saying he would "cut him into pieces and throw in Yamuna" if he did not comply.
Based on the complaint of Tanveer and other protestors, including Sultan Ahmad and Syed Abdul Ali, a non-cognisable offence case was registered July 24 at Jamia Nagar Police station.